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CC 10-04-05 MINUTES CUPERTINO CITY COUNCIL Regular Meeting October 4, 2005 CUPEIQ1NO PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE At 6:47 p.m. Mayor Kwok called the meeting to order in the Community Hall Council Chamber, 10350 Torre Avenue, Cupertino, and led the Pledge of Allegiance. He asked for a moment of silence in memory of former Mayor Wally Dean. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Patrick Kwok, Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, Council member Sandra James, Council member Dolly Sandoval, and Council member Kris Wang. PUBLIC COMMENTS REGARDING CLOSED SESSION - None CEREMONIAL MATTERS - PRESENTATIONS - None POSTPONEMENTS The City Clerk noted that item number 11 was postponed to October 18 at staff's request. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS The City Clerk noted the following written communications: For item number 9, a petition in favor of keeping Kim Street open signed by approximately 700 people, and a handout listing their talking points for scheduled speakers; for item number 10, a letter rrom Home Builders Association of Northern California, and email rrom Dr. Marie Lin opposing changes to the Rl and RHS zones. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Craig Slama talked about the City Council's denial of the waiver request for the Tournament of Bands event. He said that Cupertino schools are famous for their quality of education, and they should not be treated as just another nonprofit organization. Julia Miyakawa said that she is also a volunteer with the Tournament of Bands. She asked why waivers have been given to other organizations, such as the Cherry Blossom Festival, Oktoberfest, Moon Festival, etc., and she asked what criteria are used to waive costs. City Manager David Knapp explained that in the cases mentioned, the item waived was the rental fee for use of a facility. The City does not waive direct costs, such as those for Sheriffs Officers needed to control traffic. He said that staff would bring back a report to Council about the types of waivers that have been granted. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 2 CONSENT CALENDAR Motion: Approve the items on the Consent Calendar as recommended, with the exception of item Nos. 2 and 4, which were pulled for discussion. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Sandra James. Motion carried 5-0. AYES: Mayor Patrick Kwok, Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, Council member Sandra James, Council member Dolly Sandoval, Council member Kris Wang. NOES: None. ABSENT: None. 1. Approve the minutes rrom the September 6 and 14 City Council meetings. 3. Adopt a resolution accepting Payroll for September 23, Resolution No. 05-166. 5. Authorize recruitment of a full-time IT Assistant position in lieu of replacing the current part-time position. 6. Adopt a resolution approving a Grant of Easement for roadway, Madhu N. Kopalle and Jaya C. Kopalle, husband and wife as joint tenants, 10580 South Foothill Boulevard, APN 357-05-059, Resolution No. 05-167. 7. Accept municipal improvements for driveway approach, curb and gutter, sidewalk, storm drain for Jae-Hak Ko and Hye-Ryeong Kim, Husband and Wife, as Joint Tenants, 10040 Carmen Road. (No documentation in packet). 8. Adopt a resolution approving an Improvement Agreement for grading, surveying, site hardscape, landscaping and irrigation, fencing, traffic control, and erosion control for Cupertino Town Centre, LP, a California limited partnership, Civic Park Development R- 2, APN 369-40-002, Resolution No. 05-168. ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT CALENDAR 2. Adopt resolutions accepting Accounts Payable for September 16 and 23, Resolution Nos. 05-164 and 05-165. Administrative Services Director Carol Atwood explained that the amount shown for elections is a partial payment to the Registrar of Voters, and the final cost is estimated to total $200,000. Motion: adopt Resolution Nos. 05-164 and 05-165. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Kris Wang. The motion carried unanimously. 4. Accept the Treasurer's Investment and Budget Report for August 2005. Administrative Services Director explained that staff does an annual mid-year budget adjustment, and that will be provided for Council's review in December. Motion: accept the Treasurer's Investment and Budget Report. Moved by Council member Kris Wang, seconded by Council member Sandra James. The motion carried unanimously. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 3 PUBLIC HEARINGS 9. Consider adopting a resolution authorizing the Director of Public Works to remove the inoperable traffic barrier rrom Kim Street, extending the current turning restrictions rrom Bollinger Road onto Kim Street to include the hours of 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and denying the petition to permanently close Kim Street north of Bollinger Road, Resolution No. 05-169. Council received the following written communications: (1) A petition in favor of keeping Kim Street open signed by approximately 700 people, and (2) A handout listing the talking points for 10 speakers who had organized as a group. Public Works Director Ralph Qualls reviewed the staff report and reviewed some PowerPoint slides. Cecil Coe said that he represented a group of residents who submitted a petition signed by 703 people rrom 582 households. The petition asked that Kim Street be kept open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. He gave some history on the modifications to Kim street traffic patterns. The following individuals also spoke in favor of keeping the street open 24 hours a day. Their comments included: There is no record of accidents; the closure forces traffic into McClellan Road, which is already heavily traveled; traffic patterns have changed since the Kim Street closure was implemented years ago; the closure could affect emergency response times; it puts an extra burden on student travel; not right to sacrifice the good of the many for the good of the few; streets are there for the community; and there is no through access to Stelling in that neighborhood. Bernie Kalvelage Deb BaneIjee Janet Ward Charlie Hanson Emily Wu Paul Cheng Alan Zapala Leslie Jeffries Mrs. Truong Mabel McFarland Martin Jeffries Susan (no last name given) Robert Dee The following individuals spoke in favor of closing Kim Street or at least keeping the current restrictions. Their comments included: The problem with excessive traffic flow on Kim stemmed rrom the failure to continue Bollinger to Stelling; it acts as a funnel directing cars into the Kim Street neighborhood; Kim should be closed for safety reasons; it's impossible to slow cars to 25 mph; Kim should be closed for peace and quiet; the street should be for residents only; close the street 24/7 once and for all; have the City get together with the schools regarding bussing; we bought our house on Kim Street because it was closed one-way; let people enjoy walking to the park; concern for the safety of small children and an increase in robberies; keep the street closed for less traffic; not meant to be a thoroughfare; Kim isn't a big enough street to open it up; the neighborhood was quiet but now kids can't even bike on the road; Home Depot and De Anza College traffic is bad; lots of speeding and garbage being thrown around; many accidents; no stop signs or traffic signals; keep Kim St. the way it is, or close it completely; Kim St. is the October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 4 De Anza College cut-through; lots of illegal turning, driving down street, passing, etc.; people drive down the street who aren't part ofthe neighborhood; install speed bumps on surrounding streets as was done on Kim; the restrictions should be extended to Saturday and Sunday as well due to Home Depot traffic; fulfill Council campaign promise to do something to calm residential street traffic instead of designated surface streets; traffic is double the accepted average; uncertainty that those who signed the petition to keep Kim Street open 24/7 were all Cupertino residents. Mark Ziegler Chris Hall Robert Hall Patrick Yam Bhoomaiah Alishefti Rajeefa Gaur Ravi Nyalakonda Andrea Harris Kathy Miller Ashwini Surpu Siva Jayasenan Peewah Lau Barbara Davis Sriram Raghunathan Marjorie Gambell Shuxing Song Fred Eatock Harvey Checkman Fan Chan Robert Dee - De Anza College student Public Works Director Ralph Qualls reviewed the staff recommendation and Council's options. Administrative Services Director Carol Atwood responded to a question regarding money collected rrom citations. She said that the revenue is split between the County and State jail systems, and the City. Captain John Hirokawa explained that the State tacks on a lot of fees for DUI training, drug classes, night court, etc., but for the basic fine itself the City gets 85%, and the rest goes to the County. He responded to a question rrom Council regarding responding to an emergency call, and said that an officer would go the quickest route to the call in the safest manner, even if it violates a vehicle code. He commented that County police and fire don't like barriers on streets because it slows down response times. He said that they would enforce any restrictions, but when there is a gate that is chained open, even though signs are posted, people are confused thinking that they can go through even during restricted times. He said that enforcement will continue with clarification rrom Council, and commented that residents are not exempt rrom following the vehicle code. Dolly Sandoval suggested that residents let staff know about time patterns for speeders so that law enforcement can be present, become active in the Neighborhood Watch program, talk to neighborhood kids about speeding, and think about putting together a petition to submit to Public Works for adding speed bumps if the neighborhood wants them. For staff, she suggested that more stop signs be added in this area on particular streets. Motion: Open Kim 24/7 to two-way traffic. Richard Lowenthal, Dolly Sandoval and Patrick Kwok said that they would not support the motion because they wanted to take it one step at a time and keep Kim open one-way to see how it works. The motion failed with Richard Lowenthal, Dolly Sandoval, and Patrick Kwok all voting no. Moved by Council member Kris Wang, seconded by Council member Sandra James. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 5 Motion: Open Kim 24/7 to one-way traffic northbound with no restrictions and to remove the gate. The motion carried unanimously. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Dolly Sandoval. Motion: Retain the median. Motion carried with Council member Kris Wang voting no. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Dolly Sandoval. Public Works Director Ralph Qualls recommended leaving the median as a traffic- calming device. He said that staff would look at several intersections to see if they meet State standards for stop signs and report back to the Council. 10. General Plan update, Application Nos. GPA-2004-01 and EA-2004-17, City of Cupertino, Citywide. (This item was continued rrom the meeting of September 20). Steve Piasecki reviewed the staff report using PowerPoint slides, and highlighted the "hot topics" on which the Council members had indicated their preliminary intentions in order to determine areas of consensus. He said that none of the decisions are final until the General Plan is completed and adopted. Motion: Remove Regnart Creek Trail rrom the draft document that carried forward from tonight's meeting. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Sandra James. Motion carried unanimously. Piasecki said that the recommendation on item No. 32 is to continue to pursue development of a trail along the Union Pacific tracks as a possible trail connection for the future, if Union Pacific ever abandons that right of way and decides not to have trains on that track. Lowenthal noted that additional wording is suggested which would require Union Pacific to allow a trail in the event they abandon the right of way and change the use. Dennis Whittaker said he was in favor of the suggestion, since it may be a means of encouraging mass transit in the area instead of making new roadways. Motion: Add the changed language to the draft carried forward from tonight's meeting. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Sandra James. Motion carried unanimously. Piasecki said that item No. 35 originally included wording that trails should be located on the opposite side of the creek rrom houses. He said that was not always possible, and the Bicycle-Pedestrian Commission recommended some alternate wording about working with the neighbors. Motion: Use the Bicycle Pedestrian Commission-recommended wording on this item. Moved by Council member Dolly Sandoval, seconded by Council member Sandra James. Motion carried unanimously. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 6 Piasecki said that there also appears to be Council consensus regarding Cohesive Commercial Centers wording, which would limit non-retail uses, and that four of the Council members do not wish to place those limits. Motion: Not to add the wording that would limit non-retail uses to 25% of the shopping center. Moved by Council member Sandra James, seconded by Council member Kris Wang. Motion carried unanimously. Piasecki said that item No. 60 talked about balancing the needs of pedestrians with vehicular traffic. Jennifer Griffin talked about the importance of creating a safe crossing area at the major intersections around the Vallco shopping center. Motion: Restore the policy to balance the needs of pedestrians with desired traffic services. Moved by Council member Dolly Sandoval, seconded by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal. Motion carried unanimously. Piasecki reviewed item No. 30 regarding a 1 % for art program. He said that three Council members were opposed; one member said it should not be mandated but encouraged, and one suggested a .25 percent plan instead. City Planner Cynthia Wordell said that the current General Plan has wording more along the lines of encouraging art, so another option would be to leave the wording as it is in the General Plan and address the requirements for public art on a project by project basis. Council member James said that she preferred the case-by-case approach, and was more interested in a water feature than a single piece of art, and that public art should be given incentives instead of being penalized. Mayor Patrick Kwok said he felt that a public art requirement should apply to larger projects, and he encouraged staff to negotiate with and encourage developers to provide public art. Council member Lowenthal said he felt the community would benefit from more public art, and he is envious of other cities that have made that happen. He had suggested the .25% figure because for some large projects, the dollar requirement would have been prohibitive. Motion: Stay with the current General Plan wording on the issue of public art. Moved by Council member Sandra James, seconded by Council member Dolly Sandoval. Motion carried 3-2, with Mayor Patrick Kwok, Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal voting no. Sara Arseno said that she felt public art enhances the community. Jennifer Griffin talked about public art that she had seen in other communities, and felt that more traditional art, sculptures, and parklands are more appropriate than something like the artificial palm trees made of metal that were in the parking lot of a new burger restaurant in another town. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 7 Roberta Hollimon spoke in favor of public art. She said that when the Fine Arts Commission was first established, one of the Council members said "we've now grown up to where we can get past curbs and gutters and we can think about something higher." Christina Daile Ore said she was also in favor of public art. Beverley Bryant, Homebuilders Assoc., said that although the art requirement would apply to commercial buildings, she cautioned the Council that 1 % is a high amount for public art, and often building owners and developers will include art as an amenity. She was in favor of encouraging public art rather than mandating it. Mark Mckenna, representing the Chamber of Commerce, said they are against the 1 % for art requirement. He referred to a letter rrom the Chamber of Commerce that was sent September 20, and said that the market should drive the process and not mandated. Piasecki said that item No. 65 referred to setting standards for environmentally "green" buildings. Motion: Set standards for Green Building design. Moved by Council member Dolly Sandoval, seconded by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal. Motion carried unanimously. Beverley Bryant, representing the Homebuilders Association, said her organization is sponsoring a program for green building, and cautioned the Council not to set standards at this time, or event mandate that in the General Plan. Builders are already building green homes, and at any time the Council can encourage those green building standards without mandating them. Chris Draper, representing the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors, said that they are supportive of standards, but are concerned about unintended consequences at the local level. He felt the Council should use an incentive-based approach, because mandates become inflexible and don't work in certain situations. Piasecki reviewed item No. 52 regarding employee cashout for reduced car parking. Mike Bullock said that the cashout would be voluntary, and companies mayor may not want to reduce the size of their parking lots. He said this program does not imply that there is excess land or that it could be sold, but it could be leased out. He encouraged the City Council to consider all methods of increasing sustainability. Dennis Whittaker said that he is concerned about the word "trust" in the cashout proposal. If an employer builds something other than a parking lot, there is a good chance there will be infringement on other people. Anne Ng said she was a member of the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition, and expressed their support for the car park and cashout wording to be included in the General Plan. She said that if the wording is to be eliminated, Council should restore the incentives and rewards for bicycling and walking. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 8 Mark McKenna, representing the Chamber of Commerce, said they were opposed to cashout program because of the management burden it would put on each employer, and because of the difficulty of enforcement. Motion: Include language regarding an option for cashout in the General Plan. Moved by Council member Dolly Sandoval, seconded by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal. Motion failed 2-3, with Mayor Patrick Kwok, Council member Sandra James, Council member Kris Wang voting no. Piasecki said that item No. 42 pertained to the Lindy Lane hillside designation. A resident of Lindy Lane said that the City has spectacular hillside lots with legislation that addresses the unique development issues, and the point of the RHS zoning is to balance the interests of private owner with public aesthetics. He showed excerpts of the Municipal Code 19.40, and said that the Lindy Lane (south) neighbors support the inclusion of full RHS zoning for all hillside lots being included in the General Plan. Luciano Daile Ore said he lived on one of the affected properties. He said that there was already an RHS overlay on top of the R-l designation there, which addressed most of the egregious impacts on the land. However, if he can no longer subdivide, it would reduce the value of his property by a substantial amount. Christina Daile Ore, Lindy Lane resident, said she was against the rezoning. She said that they have no plans to subdivide now, but they wish to preserve the value of their property. Jim Moore, Lindy Lane resident, showed PowerPoint slides and said that on the north side of Lindy Lane the hillside is very steep; there is a huge retaining wall; the Rl zoning doesn't fit the steep Sun property; and the steep hillside requires RHS type designation to provide protection. The zoning is also needed to maintain a rural nature of the area, and because the area is too steep to safely subdivide and build more homes. Charlie Casey, resident of Lindy Lane, asked that the original development plan be protected. He said it was approved after careful study of geological conditions and slope, and was designed to protect the rural environment. He said the south side was allowed smaller lots, but the north side kept larger lots because of the terrain and potential hazards such as landslides and traffic problems. He asked the Council to prevent any further development of Lindy Lane. John James presented a petition to the Council to revise the General Plan to rezone Lindy Lane RHS. He showed PowerPoint slides, which described the mudslide of 1983 and 1994, and illustrated the damage to his home, which was destroyed. He said this is indicated as a seismic hazard zone in a report rrom 2002. He said that further property damage and loss oflife might result if the property is not rezoned rrom R-l to RHS. Julia James, Lindy Lane resident, asked that Council rezone it to RHS as it was before because it is a matter of safety. October 4, 2005 Cupertino· City Council Page 9 Frank Sun, Lindy Lane resident, said he was the owner of the retaining wall, which was paid for by the previous resident when the road was widened and not because of any landslides. He said he was opposed to rezoning the area because of the negative impact on his property value. He asked that the Council follow the Planning Commission recommendation, and he said that the. zoning was changed earlier in the year without proper notice. Community Development Director Steve Piasecki noted that a neighborhood meeting had been held and property owners had attended. John Brogato said that he is a general contractor who works in that area most days, and he was not aware of any notification. He said the new ordinance negatively impacts the property owners, and he was in support of the RHS zoning. Dr. Sun, a local real estate agent, opposed the rezoning. He said there are already many subdivided lots and those past owners got geological soils reports and were still able to build. He said that the current owners should have the same right as previous owners to maximize their property value. Allan Loving, representing Taylor Woodrow, asked about the overall consequences for the General Plan if this item is continued. City Planner Cynthia Wordell replied that if this item is continued to the next meeting, the EIR could be heard on November 15, along with the first reading ofthe ordinance adopting the General Plan. The following individuals said they were opposed to the ordinance change for the same reasons mentioned by Dr. Sun and other speakers: Shirley Bates Sherry Feng Justin Lin Shan Zhu Ms. Feng also discussed the measures taken during construction of her home to address the geological conditions of the area. John Knopp, Lindy Lane resident, said that 12-15 years ago the Planning Commission rejected a rezoning proposal. If it went through now, all the property owners would be out of compliance. He said that values should be left as they are, and building applications should be examined to address geological conditions. Mark Santoro, Lindy Lane resident, said that the geology of the south side of the road is different than the north side, which is why the zoning was done the way it was in the first place. He said that houses built on either side could be safe, depending on how they are built. He said that the property owners are asking to leave the property the way it was when they bought it, and rezoning would devalue his property by about $1 million. He said he did receive notice about the rezoning and attended the neighborhood meeting, but until that time they did not know that the RHS overlay to the R-l zoning had been changed to 15%. David Pau, Mountcrest Drive, was opposed to the ordinance change because he wanted to protect his property rights and value. October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 10 Jennifer Griffin talked about the history of mudslides and said it is important to establish minimum lot sizes in hillside areas, and particularly in Lindy Lane because of the geological hazards. Bill Guangerich said he sympathized with the northern neighbors regarding the re- designation of their property. He said he also sympathized with the neighbors on the south side, and urged the City to take into account the sensitivity of those lots. He said that better communication could have saved a lot of anguish about construction that is going on now. Motion: Keep the R-l designation. Moved by Council member Sandra James, seconded by Council member Kris Wang. Motion carried unanimously. In summary, the City Council took straw votes to: · Remove Regnart Creek from the Draft General Plan · Add new language to the Draft General Plan regarding the Union Pacific Trail · Use the wording provided by the Bicycle Pedestrian Commission regarding the location of the trails · Not add the wording to prohibit non-retail uses rrom exceeding 25% of a shopping center · Balance the needs ofthe pedestrians with desired traffic services · Stay with the current General Plan regarding Public Art · Set standards for Green Building design · Not include the language regarding the cashout program · Keep the R-l designation Council concurred to continue the public hearing on the General Plan to the next meeting. 11. Consider an appeal of the Planning Commission's approval of Application No. TM-2004- 05, Wayne Aozasa (CA Water Service), located on Greenleaf Dr., APN 326-33-107. (This item was postponed to October 18 at staffs request - no documentation in packet): (a) Tentative Map to subdivide a .95-acre parcel into four lots ranging from approximately 6,430 square feet to 8,880 square feet, plus a remainder of 11,500 square feet Council concurred to postpone this item to the next meeting. UNFINISHED BUSINESS NEW BUSINESS October 4, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page II ORDINANCES 12. Conduct the second reading of Ordinance No. 1968: "An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Cupertino Amending Cupertino Municipal Code, Chapter 11.24, Section 11.24.150 Relating to Parking Prohibition Along Certain Streets to Remove the Prohibition of Parking on the West Side of Vista Drive Between Apple Tree Drive and a Point 200 Feet South." The City Clerk read the ordinance. Motion: To read the ordinance by title only and that the City Clerk's reading would constitute the second reading thereof. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Sandra James. Motion carried 5-0. Motion: To enact Ordinance No. 1968. Moved by Vice-Mayor Richard Lowenthal, seconded by Council member Sandra James. Motion carried 5-0. STAFF REPORTS - None COUNCIL REPORTS Council members highlighted the activities of their committees and various community events. ADJOURNMENT At 12:10 a.m., the meeting was adjourned. For more information: Staff reports, backup materials, and items distributed at the meeting are available for review at the City Clerk's Office, 777-3223, and also on the Internet at www.cupertino.org.Click on Agendas & Minutes/ City Council/ Packets. Most Council meetings are shown live on Cable Channel 26, and are available at your convenience from our web site. Visit www.cupertino.org and click on Watch Meetings. Videotapes are available at the Cupertino Library, or may be purchased from the Cupertino City Channel, 777-2364. -~